With one game down in Week 10 and 13 more to go on Sunday and Monday, Sporting News' network of NFL correspondents examines a hot topic for every team:

The Buccaneers paid big money—$55.5 million over five years—to lure Vincent Jackson to Tampa Bay last March. But at the midway point of the season, he’s looking like a bargain.

The reason is that, in addition to being one of the best deep threats in the NFL, Jackson has made virtually every player around him better.

By consistently outracing, outleaping and outworking defenders for balls, he has made quarterback Josh Freeman better. And by maintaining an admirable off-field work ethic that is virtually second to none, he has made young wideouts Mike Williams and Tiquan Underwood better.

Only eight games into his Tampa tenure, Jackson may already be the best receiver the Bucs have ever had. That’s obviously an indictment on the team’s history. But it’s also a testament to Jackson—who goes against his old team, San Diego, on Sunday—and the way he prepares for games and performs in them.

—Roy Cummings

AFC East

Buffalo Bills: Safety Jairus Byrd is making a push to be considered the best player in the league at his position. The impending free agent has 42 tackles, three interceptions, three passes defensed and three forced fumbles. Byrd has developed into a complete player, equally strong in pass coverage and run support. On a defense sorely lacking playmakers, he’s been the biggest one. He’s the only member of the secondary consistently playing at a high level. The Bills would be smart to start negotiations on a contract extension for Byrd now. On and off the field, he’s represented Buffalo well. —Jay Skurski

Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins' stingy defense, ranked sixth in the NFL in points allowed, has been a big reason for the team's surprising 4-4 start. But fantasy football owners shouldn't hesitate to play their quarterbacks and receivers against the Dolphins and their 30th-ranked pass defense. Through eight games, they have allowed five 300-yard passers and several aren’t exactly elite throwers—Carson Palmer, Mark Sanchez, Kevin Kolb, Sam Bradford and Andrew Luck, who badly exposed them for 433 yards last week. Watch out when the Dolphins face Tom Brady twice in December. —Ben Volin

New England Patriots: The Patriots could have safeties Patrick Chung (shoulder) and Steve Gregory (hip), who had been the starters, back on the field Sunday against the Bills. And it will be interesting to see if Devin McCourty remains at the position. A former Pro Bowler at cornerback, McCourty moved to safety the past two games because of the injuries and did the same at the end of last season. He played so well there in 2011 that the Patriots wanted him to start this season at safety, but they had fears about their other corners. Chung has been inconsistent and Gregory is smart but not a huge playmaker. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see McCourty at safety once Aqib Talib’s suspension ends and he gets his legs under him. —Shalise Manza Young

New York Jets: Cornerback Antonio Cromartie told the NFL Network on Thursday that the Jets “definitely” will make the playoffs, despite their current 3-5 record. Yes, more talk from the Jets, who backed it up during the first two seasons of Rex Ryan’s coaching regime but have fallen flat since then. Not surprisingly, Ryan said he supported Cromartie’s stance. But, as always, talk is cheap. Cromartie and Co. could begin to justify those words Sunday by becoming the first team to win at Seattle this season. If not, maybe it’s time for Ryan to muzzle his players—the way he has muzzled himself, at least somewhat. —J.P. Pelzman

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens: Defensive coordinator Dean Pees has made a smart move by going upstairs and calling his defenses from the press box. Pees made the move last week against the Browns and the Ravens won, 25-15. All of the success against Cleveland isn’t related to Pees’ decision, especially since the Browns have the 30th-ranked offense. But the Ravens seemed more poised and steady during the game, and there wasn't as much confusion. There are some coordinators who like to stay on the field and communicate with players. But in the press box, you get a better look at the field and you can make quicker decisions. With Pees upstairs on the headphones, there didn't seem to be that delay in making calls. —Mike Preston

Cincinnati Bengals: The Bengals have lost their last four—the 16th time in the past 22 seasons they have had a losing streak of four games or more. A big reason for that is they have been unable to take control of games in the fourth quarter. During three of the four losses, the Bengals were tied or ahead entering the final period. Last year, six of their nine wins came when they rallied back in the final 15 minutes. If they are going to upset the Giants Sunday, they will also have to play turnover-free. Andy Dalton is the first Bengals quarterback to throw an interception in the first eight games, and last week's pick in the fourth quarter led to Denver putting the game away. —Joe Reedy

Cleveland Browns: The Pat Shurmur regime’s hopes for survival hinge on perfecting an effective plan for the offense during the bye week and carrying it out. Rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden needs a receiving corps with well-defined roles. That was impossible to establish in the first half because of injuries, but it can be done now. Rookie Josh Gordon and second-year man Greg Little need to start, with rookie speedster Travis Benjamin and rookie possession receiver Josh Cooper filling complementary roles. Rookie back Trent Richardson figures to be healthier than he has been all year, and he should get at least 18 carries a game. It’s scary for Shurmur to rely so heavily on youth, but these guys are the future and the season was essentially gone after an 0-5 start. —Steve Doerschuk

Pittsburgh Steelers: How good is defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau? The Steelers’ defense has climbed to No. 1 overall and No. 1 against the pass without Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu and any real sack production from their outside linebackers, James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley. Injuries have prevented Harrison and Woodley from being the feared and productive duo that terrorized opposing quarterbacks from 2008-2010. This year, the two have combined for four sacks—three by Woodley—while Harrison tries to regain some semblance of the form that made him the NFL’s defensive player of the year in 2008. He missed the entire preseason and the first three games of the regular season with a knee injury. The lack of pressure is partly the reason the team has only eight takeaways, second fewest in the NFL. Yet, LeBeau has worked his magic and pieced together a scheme that has the Steelers residing where they always seem to reside —at the top of the league in defense. —Gerry Dulac

AFC South

Houston Texans: If Matt Schaub wants to be considered among the top-10 quarterbacks in the league, he needs to lead the Texans to a victory over a tough opponent on the road. Winning at Denver before Peyton Manning had become totally comfortable in his new digs was impressive, but defeating the Bears at Soldier Field in a prime-time game would show the nation Schaub has what it takes to be an elite quarterback. And it would show his team is capable of winning—and not just reaching—the Super Bowl. If Schaub plays well against the Bears, it won’t be a surprise. Over the last four seasons, his road passer rating is 101.2, which ties him with Tom Brady for third during that period. Also during that stretch on the road, Schaub has thrown 44 touchdown passes and 16 interceptions. If Schaub leads the Texans to an upset victory in Chicago, he’ll get what his teammates and coaches believe is long-overdue respect as one of the NFL’s better quarterbacks. It’s time for Schaub to produce perhaps the best performance of his nine-year career. —John McClain

Indianapolis Colts: Cornerback Darius Butler might be a remedy to what’s ailing the Colts’ pass defense. The 2009 second-round pick of the Patriots made his first start this season as injuries sidelined Jerraud Powers and Vontae Davis, and his ball-hawking skills were instrumental in the blowout win over the Jaguars. His three takeaways—a fumble recovery and two interceptions, including a pick-6—matched the defense’s total in the first eight games. Butler signed as a street free agent on Sept. 25 and was available for a reason. But he has shown a knack for being around the ball and making plays. That’s been lacking with Davis battling knee and ankle injuries and Powers dealing with a toe injury and an inconsistent season. When Davis and Powers return, Butler could be a solid nickel corner and use Cassius Vaughn as the No. 4. If that ends up being the pecking order, it could be a serviceable group and it wil be tested immediately. The team returns to action Nov. 18 at New England. —Mike Chappell

Jacksonville Jaguars: It’s still two weeks from Thanksgiving, and the Jaguars might already be counting the days until this miserable season is over. With the NFL’s worst record, the 1-8 Jaguars now have to guard against coming completely apart as they did in the 27-10 loss to the Colts Thursday night. They accumulated six major penalties, including an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on coach Mike Mularkey for protesting a Andrew Luck 1-yard sneak for a touchdown. With six consecutive losses and an uncertain future facing general manager Gene Smith and Mularkey, the challenge for the Jaguars now is to find a way to be reasonably competitive. They’ve been outscored 153-44 in five home games alone. “We’re in a tough spot right now, a bad record,” linebacker Paul Posluszny said. “We got a long way to go. This will test the character of our team.” No matter what happens, it’s hard to imagine first-year owner Shad Khan not ordering a housecleaning when this season is over. —Gene Frenette

Tennessee Titans: Owner Bud Adams is mad, and when that happens, no one’s job is safe. Adams said as much when he sounded off to The Tennessean after his team’s 51-20 loss to the Bears. He even put coach Mike Munchak on notice. Adams likes Munchak and deep down doesn’t want to fire him. He adored him as a player with the Oilers, and he’s the guy Adams wanted to coach his team when Jeff Fisher and the team parted ways after the 2010 season. But the Titans desperately need to show some improvement in the final seven weeks. In five of their six losses, they were crushed by 21 points or more. And they have allowed 30 points or more in seven of nine games. Not good. —Jim Wyatt

AFC West

Denver Broncos: If the Broncos lose Peyton Manning to an injury, their playoff chances would be devastated. But he's not the only indispensable Bronco now that linebacker Von Miller has become the team’s best run defender, supplementing his elite pass-rush ability. Miller already has nine sacks and 17 tackles for losses this season; no teammate has more than five stops behind the line of scrimmage. If it weren't for J.J. Watt's transcendent season, Miller would be pushing for defensive player of the year honors; as it is, he's the Broncos' best big-play linebacker since Karl Mecklenburg and is living up to John Elway's draft-day praise in 2011, when he compared Miller with the late Hall of Famer Derrick Thomas. —Andrew Mason

Kansas City Chiefs: Don’t expect much change in the Chiefs’ defense even though coach Romeo Crennel has relinquished coordinator duties and passed them to linebackers coach Gary Gibbs. But the move still makes sense. The Chiefs have had so many things go wrong for them on game day that Crennel needs to be able to devote his full attention to his head coaching chores. Statistically, the Chiefs’ defense hasn’t played well, but it has been under extreme pressure in virtually every minute of every game. The Chiefs haven’t played with a lead all season, so they’ve constantly had to honor both the run and the pass. Turnovers have frequently saddled the defense with lousy field position. —Adam Teicher

Oakland Raiders: It’s time for the Raiders to find out what life might be like without Darren McFadden as their primary running back. If they like what they see in Taiwan Jones, assuming he gets a meaningful workload against the Ravens, on Sunday and perhaps beyond, they would be prudent to at least consider moving on without McFadden next season. There’s no question that McFadden is Oakland’s most-talented back based on what we know right now. However, it’s not in the team’s best interests to keep investing in McFadden without getting a full season’s worth of games in return. McFadden has one year left on his contract. He has missed at least three games in each of his first four NFL seasons, and he is out with a high-ankle sprain right now. The Raiders might not be fond of parting ways with McFadden, but that pain could be soothed by getting some draft picks in return. Who knows? Jones and Mike Goodson might be able to fill the void just fine. —Steve Corkran

San Diego Chargers: The Chargers must jump-start an offense that ranks 26th in the NFL in yardage and 16th in points per game. That effort begins with more consistency from quarterback Philip Rivers, whose supporting cast is still taking auditions. The wide receiver slot opposite Malcom Floyd is expected to be a rotation of Robert Meachem and Danario Alexander for now. Meanwhile, left tackle Jared Gaither (groin) continues to work back from injury. The performance at those spots will go a long way in deciding whether this offense is anything more than average in 2012. —Michael Gehlken

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys: If the Cowboys (3-5) have hopes of turning around their season, they need running back DeMarco Murray to return to health. He is expected to miss his fourth straight game Sunday with a sprained foot. The Cowboys will not play Murray until he is 100 percent because of the demands of the position and how important Murray is to their future. But there is no question they miss him and need him. The past three games, with Murray out, the Cowboys have produced 169 rushing yards in 66 carries. That works out to 56.3 yards per game and 2.6 yards per carry. He would take pressure off quarterback Tony Romo and give them a real threat out of the backfield. Right now, the mix of a hobbled Felix Jones and pedestrian backups Phillip Tanner and Lance Dunbar are not getting it done. —Clarence Hill

New York Giants: Jason Pierre-Paul said the defensive players have to stop being "selfish" in terms of trying to do too much to make a play rather than handling their assignment. Earlier this season, Pierre-Paul admitted he wasn't having as much fun as he did a year ago, when he amassed 16.5 sacks and emerged as a star end. This season, Pierre-Paul leads the Giants with 6.5 sacks, but he has not been the dominant force he was in 2011. The third-year player is learning about life as a marked man. He is always targeted with extra blockers and has been able to defeat his share of double-teams, but the next step in his development is to rise above the extra blocking attention. At times, Pierre-Paul has been guilty of the "selfish" play himself by going to extremes to make a play rather than sticking to his assignment. Usually, though, he's been able to maintain his responsibility. —Paul Schwartz

Philadelphia Eagles: If the Eagles don't run the ball consistently Sunday against Dallas, the entire offensive coaching staff should be ushered to the hospital for immediate lobotomies. With four backups on the offensive line, with a quarterback struggling to stay upright and protect the ball and with a Pro Bowl running back whose two best career games have come against the Cowboys, it would stand to reason Andy Reid’s best recipe for ending his team’s four-game losing streak is to give the ball to LeSean McCoy as much as possible. The Eagles ran the ball effectively against the Saints but couldn’t keep up with New Orleans’ firepower. They should be equipped to rack up yards against Dallas’ 15th-ranked run defense and make plays on defense against the turnover-prone Cowboys offense. —Geoff Mosher

Washington Redskins: Coach Mike Shanahan continues to insist the Redskins are headed in the right direction, pointing to the improvements on offense. And he cites injuries as the reason the defense hasn't improved likewise. But injuries explain only some of the issues. It's tough to keep saying you're going in the right direction when you're 3-6 in Year 3 and 14-27 overall. The Redskins keep saying they've upgraded their roster, but the results do not match their assertions. Either the coaching isn't getting it done or the personnel decisions are failing. Either way, Shanahan and Co. have a lot to prove. If you have to keep telling people you're going the right way, then perhaps you're really not. It should be obvious by this point. —John Keim

NFC North

Chicago Bears: Coach Lovie Smith has a reputation for never taking risks and sticking with his conservative cover 2 zone. But this year’s defense has been anything but staid all year. From stunts up front, to shifting defensive end Julius Peppers to different positions, to playing a lot of single safety, to even blitzing occasionally, the Bears have taken chances successfully by mixing in surprises when they have the upper hand. They're not afraid to do it with personnel, either, mixing in Kelvin Hayden and now D.J. Moore at nickel back. This defense has rarely been predictable or ineffective. —Gene Chamberlain

Detroit Lions: The Madden Curse might not be real, but Calvin Johnson’s injuries are. Johnson hasn’t practiced in two weeks because of a sore left knee. He’s also dealt with finger, foot and ankle injuries this year. And Thursday he revealed he suffered nerve damage from a September concussion that makes it difficult for him to grip the ball. All that makes what Johnson has accomplished this year all the more impressive. He ranks third in the league in receiving yards and 10th in receptions. And though his touchdowns are down, his impact on the game isn’t. He’s truly the best playmaker around. —Dave Birkett

Green Bay Packers: The coaches will be tempted to play outside linebacker Clay Matthews as soon as he's able. But being medically cleared and being beyond the risk of re-injury are two different things. Matthews has an injured left hamstring that he has pulled twice before. The team has critical road games against the Lions and Giants coming up, and it would be ideal to have Matthews available for at least one of the two games. The temptation will be to push him to be available for the Lions matchup on Nov. 18, but the club can't lose sight of the big picture. There are four division games in December, including a Week 15 showdown with the Bears. Matthews has to either be held out long enough to play an entire game or be limited to a small number of snaps, such as passing downs only. —Tom Silverstein

Minnesota Vikings: The Vikings could be heading for a monumental second-half nose dive, but they won’t bench quarterback Christian Ponder no matter how bad things get. Nor should they. A fast start to the season shouldn’t cloud what has always been the No. 1 priority for this season: Determining over a 16-game period whether Ponder is the long-term answer at quarterback on a young team that was rebuilt to compete for the playoffs starting in 2013. Ponder looked to be that quarterback throughout most of the first five weeks. He’s done a 180 the past four weeks. Pulling him for the more athletic Joe Webb would provide a temporary spark, but it would ignore the bigger and much more important picture for this team. —Mark Craig

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons: Why not the Falcons? At the halfway point of the season, they are the last remaining undefeated team in the NFL. But absolutely no one seems to be giving them a shot to finish 16-0. And practically no one thinks they can make any noise in the playoffs after three early exits the past four seasons. Clearly, most of those folks have not looked at the schedule. If they did, they would give the Falcons a shot. The rest of the season, they play only one team with a winning record—the Giants (6-3) at the Georgia Dome on Dec. 16. In four seasons, Mike Smith’s teams have rarely laid an egg and have become nearly unbeatable at home. Why not the Falcons? —D. Orlando Ledbetter

Carolina Panthers: At this point, every game is a statement game for coach Ron Rivera. But beating Denver at home against former Panthers coach John Fox would be a big selling point for Rivera when he meets with owner Jerry Richardson at the end of the season to learn his fate. Richardson had grown tired of Fox's act by the end of his time in Charlotte, and he refused to extend Fox’s contract after the Panthers were destroyed by Arizona in the 2008 playoffs. This is a game the entire Panthers' organization wants to win. Can it happen? The defense has been playing well the past four weeks, but rookie cornerback Josh Norman will be challenged by Peyton Manning early and often. Rivera—and everyone else associated with the Panthers—better hope Norman performs better than he did against Eli Manning in Week 3. —Joe Person

New Orleans Saints: Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo will have a tough time deciding how much to blitz against the Falcons on Sunday—and how much he can trust his secondary to hold up when he does. The Saints had great success with the blitz last week against the Eagles, setting an early tone with an aggressive attack. But part of the reason they haven’t blitzed more often is because their cornerbacks haven’t held up in coverage well enough. They’ve been repeatedly torched by deep balls, including a 77-yard touchdown catch last week by DeSean Jackson. Now they’re facing dynamic receivers Julio Jones and Roddy White and a savvy quarterback in Matt Ryan, who generally gets rid of the ball quickly. It will be up toSpagnuolo to dial up the right mix— and for the defense to carry over that aggressive approach even when they’re not blitzing. —Mike Triplett

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals: Defensive end Calais Campbell apparently suffered a calf injury during the bye week, and as usual in the NFL, no one is talking about an injury if they don't have to. Campbell missed the last of two practices during the bye week, and his absence would be a huge blow to the Cardinals. They have some depth at defensive end, but Campbell was playing at a high level. He has 3 1/2 sacks, but more important, he has applied consistent pressure on quarterbacks and has been the best run defender up front. The defensive performance has slipped over the past month, and it's going to be hard to change course if Campbell is out for any amount of time. —Kent Somers

St. Louis Rams: Quarterback Sam Bradford didn't play against San Francisco last season, missing both contests because of a high-ankle sprain. But he'll get a firsthand look Sunday at what the NFC's top-ranked defense has to offer—a unit full of Pro Bowlers. Not exactly the best scenario for the offense to get out of its scoring slump. The expected return of wide receiver Danny Amendola and left tackle Rodger Saffold from injury should help. Nonetheless, beating the 49ers in Candlestick looks like the ultimate uphill battle. So maybe this is a game where the Rams should empty their playbook, be it different looks on offense or every trick play known to man. What do the Rams have to lose? Because playing the 49ers straight up almost certainly isn't going to work. —Jim Thomas

San Francisco 49ers: When the 49ers face the Rams on Sunday, they will have played one game in the last 24 days. That's a lot of time for offensive coordinator Greg Roman to get creative. Coming out of the bye last year, Roman's game plan included a pass play both to 330-pound nose tackle/fullback Isaac Sopoaga and left tackle Joe Staley. The two plays totaled 35 yards. What does Roman have in store this year? No one knows, and that's the point. The goal is to have the Rams’ defenders thinking about each play instead of reacting to them. —Matt Barrows

Seattle Seahawks: Anybody seen Seattle's run defense? If so, call coach Pete Carroll because he's looking for it. The ability to stop the run was the Seahawks' defining strength early in the season, and through the first six games, they didn't allow a single team to gain 100 rushing yards. Now two players have surpassed that mark in three weeks, as the 49ers' Frank Gore rushed for 131 yards in Week 7 and the Vikings' Adrian Peterson had 182 last week. The Seahawks gave up 70 yards per game rushing in the first six games and 154.3 over the past three. Seattle has one game—Sunday at home against the Jets—before its bye, and if it can't get the run defense straightened out pretty quickly, its playoff hopes will evaporate pretty quickly. —Danny O’Neil